Dwight Howard Rumors: Chances Each Team in the Running Snags D12

The league's most dominant center is still right where he's always been.

Dwight Howard, who has been involved in heavy trade talks in the offseason, has yet to be moved, and it is unknown whether a trade will actually occur.

Howard has been outspoken about his desire for a trade that would send him out of Orlando, but he has expressed wanting to stay in Orlando. That is, if Orlando can make trades to bring Howard more assets around him that would convince him to sign a long-term deal with the Magic.

There are four teams that Howard said he would sign a long-term extension with, including the Magic, New Jersey Nets, Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks. Despite not being in Howard's short list, the Chicago Bulls are also mentioned in being interested in trading for Howard.

No one knows where Howard will land, but it will just come down to who has the most valuable assets.

Here is a rundown of the chances that each of these teams have in landing Howard.

1. Chicago Bulls

Chicago has emerged as one of the Eastern Conference's best teams behind the play of All-Star point guard Derrick Rose. 

Pairing a dominant center with arguably the league's best point guard in Rose makes a lot of sense. That is why Chicago's name as been mentioned. They also have a lot of good young talent in Chicago in Luol Deng, Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer. 

Combine those players with first-round draft picks, and the Magic would be receiving a lot of value for Howard, and the Bulls would be a tough team to contend with. However, the absence of Chicago on Howard's short list of teams he would sign a long-term extension with hurts the Bulls' chances. But with the recent injury to the Nets' Brook Lopez, the Bulls could slip in as a contender for Howard.

It could be tough for Howard to ignore the potential of him and Rose playing on the same team together.

Chances of landing Dwight Howard: 15 percent

2. Orlando Magic

As Dwight Howard's original team, the Orlando Magic will always have a chance at retaining their All-Star center. Howard, who has spent seven years in Orlando, has acknowledged how much the city of Orlando means to him.

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"I've been back and forth," he said. "Mainly because the people here really care for the city. Nobody's gonna understand that. And if you hate me because of a jersey, then you never really loved me. That's how I feel."

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The problem lies in Orlando's current roster. With a huge chunk of salary invested in aging, past-their-prime superstars like Jason Richardson and Hedo Turkoglu, the Magic's flexibility in free agency or the trade market is very limited. The only way the Magic could pull off a trade for another superstar is to find someone who will value the Magic's other players, as well as the ability to take on Turkoglu's huge contract.

For now, the chances of that occurring seems unlikely. The Magic are put in a tough position because if they don't trade Howard now, they risk losing him in the offseason through free agency and they would receive nothing in return. It would be tough to convince Howard to stay in Orlando after this season, unless the Magic can promise him that they will sign some bigger name free agents in the summer.

But with hardly viable options in the trade market to obtain another superstar, the chances of Howard staying Orlando look really grim.

Chances of signing Dwight Howard: 20 percent

3. Dallas Mavericks

Winning the NBA Finals last season immediately makes Dallas a team that many NBA players would like to play for.

And after losing Tyson Chandler to the Knicks, the Mavericks have a need for dominant center. Therefore, Howard would be a great fit in Dallas.

I believe the best chance for Dallas to land Howard would be to involve another team in the trade in order to send some younger talent to Orlando, as well as some draft picks from Dallas. Howard's inclusion of Dallas in his short list of teams he'd like to sign a long-term extension with bodes well for the Mavericks.

Plus, who wouldn't want to play for Mark Cuban?

Chances of landing Dwight Howard: 35 percent

4. New Jersey Nets

The New Jersey Nets have long been the favorite to land Dwight Howard. Playing with a point guard like Deron Williams and the Nets moving to Brooklyn have been serious selling points for Howard.

Of all the teams involved in the running for Howard, the Nets have the best assets to actually make a trade for him.

On Dec. 14, it was reported that the Magic would trade Howard to the Nets in a three-team trade that would include Brook Lopez and Gerald Wallace going to Orlando, along with two first-round draft picks. While that seemed like a worthwhile deal for Orlando, the trade eventually died down.

Fast forward to the present, and Lopez has broken his foot. This injury will hurt the Nets' chances of landing Howard because the idea of landing Lopez in a trade doesn't seem as great when he is injured.

Still, the only legitimate trade talks have been with New Jersey, and it seems as if the Magic's best trade options lie with the Nets.

Chances of landing Dwight Howard: 65 percent

5. Los Angeles Lakers

The injury to Brook Lopez catapults the Los Angeles Lakers into the top spot for landing Dwight Howard. 

In the aftermath of Chris Paul going to the Los Angeles Clippers, you have to imagine the Lakers ownership would not want to be upstaged by the Clippers. 

The biggest advantage for the Lakers is the players they could send to Orlando. Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol give the Magic the best chance of being successful after the trade. Both Bynum and Gasol have won a NBA Championship and could bring that experience to a Magic team that has minimal Finals experience.

Chances to land Dwight Howard: 80 percent